...Democracy is a form of government in which people are governed by their own elected representatives. It is a government of the people, for the people and by the people. In this system of government, it is the people who are supreme and sovereign. They control the government. They are free to elect a government of their own choice. Freedom of choice is the core of democracy. Democracy existed in ancient Greek and Roman republics but with little success. It had very little scope in ancient India. Democracy entered its golden stage in he twentieth century. Many countries in the world today follow the democratic form of government. Democracy depends on the following conditions (i) co-existence of ideas and of parties; (ii) the right to free discussion; (iii) universal adult suffrage; and (iv) periodic elections. Indian is the largest democracy in the world. The Constitution of Indian was enforced on 26 January, 1950. It ushered in the age pf democracy. India became a democratic republic infused with the spirit of justice, liberty, equality and fraternity. The Preamble, the Directive Principles of State Policy and the Fundamental Rights reflect the Indian ideology as well as the caste, creed, religion, property, or sex have the right to cast their vote. After and election, the majority party or coalition forms the government and its leader become the Prime Minister. Political parties are the vehicles of ideas. Parties act as the bridge between social thought and political decision...
Words: 853 - Pages: 4
...Democracy and Communism Looking at democracy through both its weaknesses and strengths in comparison with other forms of government makes it evident that it is the best form of political system we have. In a democracy, the government is the spokesperson for their people and the needs they would like to be met. The government is a group of people in the state who have an authority to act on behalf of that state. A democracy is a state in which citizens vote to choose the best candidate to be the leader of the country. Democracy appeared from liberalism, which is the ideology when individuals develop their capacities to the fullest. A democracy reflects the liberal value that individuals are responsible for their own choices. Citizens can be free to run their lives as they want. Democracy requires an attitude of mind, a belief that every citizen has the right to outspeak and hear what is going on. However, one of the challenges of a democratic electoral system is even if we have the right to express our views, we would not take advantage of it because of its unpredictable consequences. Despite all the democratic weaknesses of this ideology, democracy is still highly consistent and about unpredictable outcomes. What makes democracy highly consistent is not knowing what the next election turnout will be, but having confidence that the candidate with a majority of votes would be elected. The essential goal of democracy is to provide a fair degree of uncertainty. What makes...
Words: 271 - Pages: 2
...Critical Response on Democracy DeVry University Political Science 330 July 16, 2011 Democracy when looked at as a system of government is when power is vested in the people who rule either directly or indirectly through freely elected officials. (democracy. (n.d.) The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition, n.d). There are certain criteria and conditions that must be place in order for a government to be considered democratic. In a democratic society the government will get its power form the people that it is to govern over. The people will elect representatives who are given the responsibility of being their voice in the state capital or countries capital. The representative’s job is to make sure they are trying to do what is in the best interest of the people that they represent. This way is called a representative democracy. The representatives under this type of representation are allowed to be in office for a specific period of time through elections. When they have completed the set term they were elected for then they must step down or try to stay in office by seeking re-election. (Dr. Almon Leroy Way, n.d.). Today you have current events that provide evidence of democracy at work in America. Looking at 2006 and 2007, our economy started to collapse and you could see that the American public as a whole was not happy with the direction of the economy and the government. They had grown weary of the War in Iraq and the drain on America’s...
Words: 1287 - Pages: 6
...(A) What is a government? The word "government" is defined by the oxford English dictionary like: “the group of people with the authority to govern a country or state; a particular ministry in office”. A government is a very useful tool for organize the human society, because we need an orden system that manages all the efforts of the same for their own benefit and prosperity. The origin of the government lies in the State. In the beginnings, the human’s societies were small and were governed by the law of the stronger. If you could protect your properties, or even rob other, which would be fine because that was the normative. This is the state of nature, or what we call "Natural Law", where people organize themselves around self-sufficiency and self-interest, as well as self-survival. But, when the societies grew, became intolerable this type of behaviors. In a scenario where there is a government, people are organized in a society with rules or laws which govern their conduct. The state was created to protect the physical and material integrity of the members of a society. (B) Utility and functions of a government organized. In the human history, have existed many types of government, and some have been better than others, regarding the division of property and justice among different social strata comprising citizens who form the state, but all have been "organized" in one way or another. From my perspective, an organized government works as a social regulator, handing...
Words: 909 - Pages: 4
...Liberal Internationalism: Peace, War and Democracy, 1997). Therefore, there are barely any disputes between first world countries which embrace democracy and liberalism as the main doctrine of their governance. This essay argues about the impact of democracy towards peace and how comes peace is embraced successfully among the representatives of democracy. Following paragraphs briefly explain liberalism’s role in today’s world and society, how liberalism reflects in business, what...
Words: 751 - Pages: 4
...Government and Politics 04) Explain the term referendum used in the extract (5 marks) A referendum is a general vote by the electorate on a single political question which has been referred to them for a direct decision. They may be used to raise issues for discussion rather than to decide or confirm policy questions. In relation to the extract, Walsi is being accused of not having the knowledge base of understanding of actual independence. Walsi was being accountable for shortfall in any economic growth expected and being able to financially match the living needs of people, the needs of all generations - from health / population growth. 05) Using your own knowledge, as well as the extract, consider the circumstances in which the UK government might choose to call a referendum (10 marks) Only one nationwide referendum had taken place in the UK before the alternative referendum. This occurred in 1975 when Harold Wilson (the British Prime minister at the time) asked ‘Do you think the UK should stay in the EU?’ In answer to his question, 67% of the voters answered ‘yes’ so therefore the UK is still part of the EU today. Not only one referendum has happened, several referendums have also been held in particular regions of the UK such as Scotland and Wales. In 1997, voters in Scotland were asked whether they wanted a Scottish Parliament while voters in Wales were asked whether they wanted a Welsh Assembly. The answer to both of these referendums was yes. Also, just recently:...
Words: 1280 - Pages: 6
...Government and Politics Megan Barry ‘Should direct democracy be more widely used in the UK?’ Direct democracy is a form of government in which all laws are created by a general vote of society. This means that political decisions are put forward to the people as they are the ones who are going to be directly affected by the outcome of the decision. An example of direct democracy used occasionally in society is referendums. A referendum is a general vote by the electorate on a single political question which has been referred to them for a direct decision. Within this essay I am going to be arguing whether direct democracy should be used more widely by weighing up the benefits and the disadvantages of direct democracy and the result on the general public. One argument for direct democracy being used more extensively in the UK is that it gives a more advanced and more accurate representation of the public’s attitude on an issue raised in parliament. Many local citizens do not often communicate with their MP; occasionally it can be difficult for Parliament to come to a decision that accurately reflects public opinion. MPs have to make choices bases what they personally feel is right and is not always entirely what the public want. Referendums give a distinct result that reflects the public’s demands. This is better as the public are satisfied and there is little need for ‘guess-work’ by the government. An example...
Words: 1278 - Pages: 6
...know as pure democracy allows people to decide and vote on policy initiatives directly, as opposed to representative democracy where people vote for representatives who then decide the policy’s, where they peoples interest’s are meant to be at heart. Direct democracy derived from ancient Greece when people had a vote in what decisions were made, however women, foreigners and slaves were excluded from voting. Now days many countries with representative democracies allow forms of direct democracy through referendums, initiative and recall. There are many benefits to direct democracy, including promoting a democratic and well-cooperated society. People have power and a say, and this opinion needs to be listened to by the government in order to please the citizens. It also provides a responsibility of the government to the people, all people have this power of a vote, and the government needs to listen to peoples concerns, as the politicians and the government will be held responsible for the well being of the people. Referendums are a form of direct democracy, and have been used in the UK many times, with the most recent being the Scottish referendum, allowing the people of Scotland to decide if they wanted to remain a part of the UK. One argument against the use of more referendums would be that the general public are not always as educated in the decision as a representative may be, this could lead to people making irrational decisions, as they are not informed enough on the...
Words: 692 - Pages: 3
...http://whynationsfail.com/ Democracy, What Is It Good For? [pic]Daron Acemoglu and James Robinson In an earlier post, we reported on our research joint with Suresh Naidu and Pascual Restrepo, “Democracy, Redistribution and Inequality”, which showed very limited effects of democracy on inequality. So one would be excused for paraphrasing Edwin Starr’s famous song and Ian Morris’s forthcoming book, War! What Is It Good for?, and ask “democracy, what is it good for?” Certainly not economic growth, most would reason. This conclusion is based on a consensus engulfing both academia and the popular press that democracy is at its best irrelevant for growth, and perhaps even a hindrance. For example, Tom Friedman wrote in the pages of The New York Times: One-party nondemocracy certainly has its drawbacks. But when it is led by a reasonably enlightened group of people, as China is today, it can also have great advantages. That one party can just impose the politically difficult but critically important policies needed to move a society forward in the 21st century,” Friedman wasn’t making this up. Robert Barro, who has written several papers on the topic, argued in his book Getting it Right: Markets and Choices in a Free Society: More political rights do not have an effect on growth… The first lesson is that democracy is not the key to economic growth. A recent survey of the recent literature similarly concludes: The net effect of democracy on growth performance cross-nationally over the...
Words: 6461 - Pages: 26
...Outline and assess deliberative democracy as alternative to representative democracy 1. Introduction Democracy can be defined as a government system in which the main power in making every government level decision is made by investing the power in public. There are many types of democracies. The main and important form of democracy which has dominated more than half of the world is the representative democracy (TORRES, 2006). However, there are other types of democracies as well which have been found by researchers to be of vital importance. Deliberative democracy is that form of democracy which has started taking its place. There are many difference and similarities between representative and deliberative democracy. This essay comprises of the detailed discussion on how deliberative democracy can be utilized in place of representative democracy. The importance of deliberative democracy is also mentioned along the conclusions in the end. 2. Representative democracy Representative democracy is one of the oldest forms of democracies. In a representative democracy, all the eligible citizens are allowed to elect their official representative. That official representative is selected on the basis of the area, domination or any other basis. It varies from one country to another. The definition of “eligible” citizen also varies from one country to other. These elected representatives of the public then represent that specific group of people in government (Stasavage, 2007)...
Words: 2253 - Pages: 10
... In America, colonists were practicing self-government because England was across the seas. In forming this democracy, principles were created. Citizens participation, individual or human rights, and economic freedom. In colonial America, democracy was a work in progress with democratic and undemocratic features. According to Document #2 Voting Qualifications, Citizens Participation was a democratic feature for the time. Citizens are a part of making and being the government. Participation is more than just a right , it's a duty. People are getting to vote if they have reached the certain amount of qualifications. An Undemocratic feature in colonial America Individual or Human Rights. All people have rights because they are humans, so they have the freedom and rights . All slaves were not treated like humans. They were treated like animals and property. They were sold not given freedom. Document #5 Plan Of A Slave Ship. According to Document #4 The Page From The Lady’s Law, Economic Freedom was a work in progress for the colonial times. Government allows some private ownership. Only men were allowed to own land or own anything, women were not allowed to own anything to their names. Only a few lucky ones got to own or keep stuff to their names without having to give to the man. In document # 2 Voting Qualifications the people got to vote to choose who was in the government. In document # 5 Plan of a Slave Ship the African American people were not treated equal...
Words: 305 - Pages: 2
...Discuss the principal feature of democratic government and non-democratic government. Give an example of each. The principal feature of democratic governments is that the power resides with the people. In a democratic system, governments are established and updated through free and fair electoral processes. Through these processes, the populace elects representatives from competing political parties. The chosen (elected) representatives govern on behalf of the people who elect them. Further, elected representatives, and in turn governments operate under the same rules of law. One example of a democratic nation is Canada. In Canada, the country’s people are represented in the House of Commons by 308 members of parliament (MP). The MPs represent constituencies that are determined based on population density. This system is ideal because large cities, with large populations have many delegates that can represent the many different opinions of the populace. The united states have a similar system whereby the people are represented by elected congress members who act on their behalf in the US government assembly. Although these are important elements in characterizing a democracy, they are obsolete without the active participation of the populace. The citizens of a democracy have an intrinsic responsibility to sustain the democracy. Firstly, people must actively participate in political affairs by staying well-informed about political issues, supporting...
Words: 513 - Pages: 3
...Democracy May 9, 2011 Ericka Short Democracy is a form of government that can be found in several different nations worldwide. Though it is a common form of government, it doesn’t just appear one day. Democratization needs to take place within a country before democracy to be formed. Democratization, though it doesn’t generally take an identical path to democracy, generally exhibits four basic conditions. The first of these conditions is that there needs to be a larger middle class established. Along with this, the middle class needs to be reachable by the population. This will allow a population to improve their standards of living. The second condition that needs to be met is that literacy needs to be present. Because democracy is based on the principles of an electoral vote, in order for democracy to work well, the population needs to be politically informed. This is not possible if the population cannot read or write. The third condition that needs to be met is that health or more over the access to health care needs to be established. In order for a population to be able to successfully build a strong economy and political government, they have to be healthy enough to establish it. This requires not only a health system to be intact at some level, but it would also require that the population would have access to the health care. The fourth and final condition that needs to be met during democratization before democracy can be formed is that modern technology needs to...
Words: 476 - Pages: 2
...Thomas M American Political Theory Professor K 07/11/2012 Democracy The term democracy is defined as: “a political system by which the citizens of a country govern themselves.... where their elected representatives make laws; the executive branch administers those laws and is responsible for the way it does so.” (www.duhaime.org). This simplified definition of the term democracy adequately defines what it is that the U.S. wants to spread and administer thought all countries around the world. After the Cold War ended, promoting the international spread of democracy seemed poised to replace the containment of democracy as the guiding principle of U.S. foreign policy. Scholars, policymakers, and commentators embraced the idea that democratization could become America's next mission. In recent years, however, critics have argued that spreading democracy may be unwise or even harmful. Because of this, the debate of whether or not the United States should spread democracy or put it on the backburner is never ending. Critics of the spread of democracy argue, “democratic peace is a myth; that the process of democratization increases the risk of war; and that democratic elections are harmful in societies that are not fully liberal.” (belfercenter.ksg.harvard.edu). This idea of democratic peace is that countries that have established democracies rarely, if ever, go to war with each other. Critics argue that even though it is rare that countries that have democracies go to war with...
Words: 680 - Pages: 3
...Democratic Leadership Style Democratic leadership style is also referred to as participative leadership. This is because all employees and organizational members have an equal say in the administrative decisions affecting their lives. The style values affirmation and collaboration of members and candidates. Democratic leadership allows equal participation of people in reposing, developing and creating laws. Democratic style can be described as an institutionalized principle because it applies social order and cooperation in the management of the human behaviour. Institutions managed through democratic style are chosen depending on the permanence and social order. The style transcends the individual human lives and intentions through enactment of rules that capitalize on the cooperative human behaviour. The democratic leader shares problem-solving and decision-making responsibilities with the employees. However, he or she retains the final decision. Democratic leadership incorporates various styles. Democratic leadership incorporates different styles such as anticipatory democracy that is related to the future expectations and bioregional democracy that links geopolitical regions to ecological regions. Additionally, democratic style also includes cellular democracy that is related to the multilevel bottom-up structure of communities; defensive democracy whereby the democratic principles within the society limits some rights to protect some institutions of democracy; and liberty...
Words: 970 - Pages: 4
